Electric railway-switch.



No. 623356. Patented u 1899. F. A. BUFF.

ELECTRIC BAI LWAY SWITCH. (Application filed 9, 1898.)

No Model.)

UNlTED %Tares PATENT OFFICE FREDERICK A. RUFF, OF DETROIT, MIOI-IIGAN, ASSIGNOR TO THE DETROIT AUTOMATIO SWITOH COMPANY, LIMITED, OF SAME PLAOE.

ELECTRIC RAlLWAY-SWITCH.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patenta No. 628,856, clated July 11, 1899.

Application filed May 9,1393. Serial No. eeonze. (No model.)

To MZ whom it amy connern: More particularly, my invention consists in Be it known that I, FREDERICK A. RUFF, a the combination, witha single insulated sec- 5 citizen of the United States, residing at Detion of trolley-wire and electromagnetic optroit, in the county of Wayne and State of erating device connected therewith, of nech 5 Michigan, have invented certain new and anism adapted to alternately throwthe switch useful Improvements in Electric Railwayreversely, and, further, in the peculiar con- Switches, of which the following is a specifistruction, arrangement, and coinbination of 60 cation, reference being had therein to the acparts, as more fully hereinafter described and companying drawings. claimed. p

IO My invention relates to that class of rail- In the d'awings,Figurelisadiagranmatic i way-switches in which the operation of the perspective View of my switch and a trolleyswitch may be controlled from the car while car about to pass the same. Fig. 2 is a lon- 6 5 in motion; and it is the object of the invengitudinal section` through the rail-throwing tion to obtain a simple const'uction of opernechanism, and Fig. 3 is a section at right I 5 ating means which is absolutely certain in its an gles thereto. Fig. l is a horizontal section action and is easily controlled by the motorthrough a modified Construction of insulated i man on the car. section of trolley-wire. 70

Heretofore railway-switches have been pro- A is the main track, B the side track, C the vided with electric Operating means comprismovable rail or switch-point and D the troling electromagnets for throwing the switchleywire, 'of an electric-railway line.

rail, electric circuits in which said magnets E is a short insulated sectionof the trolleyare included, and insulated sections of the wire located a short distance in advance of 75 trolley-wire forming portions of said circuits, said switch-point. This may be formed either the arrangement being such that when the by cutting out a section of the main trolley- 2 canmotor is turned on the trolley in passing wire and securing it in place again by insusaid insulated sections will complete their latorconnections, or, if desired, the wire may electric circuits and energize their correbe left continuous and an insulated bridge 80 sponding magnets. Thus to throw the switch secured to the under side thereof having inin one direction the motorman turns off the clined ends for guiding the trolley thereon',

motor while passing the first of said insulated as shown in Fig. 4. i

sections and turns it on while passing the F is a metallic casing located in proximity other section. To throw the switch in the reto the switch-point, preferably between the 85 Verse direction the motor is turned Ott while rails of the track and containing the switchpassingthesecond section, and to prevent the throwing mechanism and an Operating-elecoperation either way the motor is turned off tromagnet therefor. The latter is included while passing both sections. a This form of in an electric connection G between the inswitch is objectionable, first, on account of sulated section E and a source of electrical 0 its complication, two sets of electromagnets energy, such as the feeder for the trolley-wire, with independent electrical connections and or, as shown in the drawings, it may he con- 40 two insulated sections of the trolley-wire benected to the live trolley-wire.

ing necessary, and, second, that in its opera- The mechanism for throwing the switchtion it is necessary for the motornan to turn rail may be of any suitable construction 5 off and on the motor at precisely the proper adapted to alternately move the rail reversely i points in order to throw the switch in the in successive Operations thereof; but I prefright direction, and this is difficult to do, es erably employ a Construction similar to that pecially if the car is running at more than a shown and described in a prior patent issued Very slow rate ot' speed. to meon October 5, 1897, No. 391,141, of which IOO My invention consists in an improvement the following is a description. upon the above described switch-Operating H is a tilting lever or walking-bean piv- 5o means, in whichl am enabled to dispense with otally secured to a standard H' and connected one set of electromagnets, together with one by a rod I to the movable rail C. of the nsulated sections and electric-al con- J is an oscillating rod or pitman havinga IOS nection therefor. traveling engagement at its upper end with the Walking-beam and at its lower end connected to a-n actuating-lever K, the parts being so arranged that the actuation of the lever K will lift the oscillating rod J and tilt the bean II, thereby throwing the rail through the connecting-rod I, and when the lever is released the oscillating rod will fall to the opposite end of the beam, which it will tilt in the opposite direction when again actuated.- This mechanism is arranged in the casing F and is adapted to be actuated by the electro magnet L above referred to. As shown in the drawings, I preferably employ for this magnet a solenoid, which is secured in one end ot'` the casing, preferably by placing it in the two-part iron casinga b, screwed or bolted together and to the casing F and forming an iron-clad magnet. The leverK is in the form of ab-ell-crank and has connected to its upper end by means of the pivot-al link c the movable core d of the solenoid, which is slidingly secured in a tube e, around which the solenoidis wound. The other arm of the bellcrank passes through and is guided in a slot in the standard H' and has connected thereto the oscillating lever J, which isof sufficient weight to retract the core from the solenoid when the latter is not energized. To assist in this operation, I preferably make the core d tubular, with which 'form I find I am enabled to obtain the requisite magnetic pull with a lesser weight of metal in the core,w hich thus facilitates the withdrawal of the latter. The rod J is pivoted at its lower end and rests in a 'socketfat the outer end of the bell-crank, to which it is also Secured by a pin g, passing loosel-y through an aperture h in said rod. Theupperend of the rod J is bifurcated and has Secured between the arms ot' the bifurcatio the antifriction-roll 2', which eng-ages with a longitudnal slotj in the walking-beati] lever H. This beam is provided with the upwardly-extending rock-arm Ic, which is slotted to receive the end ot' the connecting-rod I, the pivot 'i' of the latter 'being made adjustable toward or from the pivot of the bean by se curing it to the' notched clamping-plates m. The rod I passes out through a slot in the casing F and is covered and protected by' the V- shaped casing or inverted trough M, which extends from this casing to the rail.

In operation if the motorman upon approaohing the switch desires to pass on without changing it he simply shuts off the current froni the motor before the insulated section E of the trolley-wire is reached, the momentum of the car carryingit over said section Without `Operating the switch. If, on the contrary, he wishes to change the switch it is not necessary for him to do anything; but -as the trolley passes the insulated section of the wire it will throw the solenoid L in series with the car-motor and cause it to pull its core d, which will cause the bellcrank k to lift the rod J, tiltng the beam H and throwing the rail; As soon as the trolley passes o& from the section E the solenoid is denergized and the weight of the 'od will cause the roller ?i to travel down the inclined slot to the other end of the'beam and at the same time cause the bell-crank K to withdraw the core (l. It will thus be seen that myswitch is thrown automatically whenever a car passes the section E unless the motor is shut off. This simplifies the operation, as it is not necessary to stop the car or to shut off the motor at any precise point, as with the devices heretofore used. Moreover, the Construction is simple and is not liable to get out out of order, and there are no electric switches or other delicate parts, and the mechanism and the solenoid are thoroughly protected by the casing F.

What I claim as my invention is- 1. In an electricrailway-switch, the combination of a movable switch member, an insulated section of trolleywire, a connection leading therefrom to a source of electrical energy, an electromagnet included in said connection and mechanism operated by said magnet for throwing said switch member, comprising a'walking-beam lever, a connection between the same and the switch member, a lever operated by said magnet, and a pitman operated by said lever havinga mov-' able connection With said walking-beam lever 3. In an electric railway-switch, the conbi nation of a solenoid having a movable core,

ICO

IIO

a bell-cranklever having one arm connected to said core, a walking-beam l ever,anda pitman resting on the opposite arm of said bellcrank and having at its upper end a traveling connection with said beam, for the purpose described.

4. In an electricalrailway-switch, the combination of a novable switch menber,an electromagnet, a walking-beamlever, a connection between the same and said switch meinber, the lever operated bythes-aid magnet,

a inovable connection with said walking-heam lever and adapted to throw the same alternately in different'directions to move the switch member alternatelyin opposite directions, substantially as described..

In testimony wh ereof I affix ny signature in presence of two witnesses.

FREDERCK'A. RU -FF;

Witnesses:-

i M. B. ODOGHERTY, OTTO F. BARTHEL. 

